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. . *Cue me screaming excitedly at the prospect of actually finishing a story.*
When had her life descended into an Agatha Christie novel?
Elena couldn't help but ponder over this as she took her latest batch of orders from a group of football players in Pop's, keeping one eye on them and another closely trained on the redhead sat in a booth with a book in hand only a few steps away. It had been a week, and the carefully placed veil that had been covering the Blossom family had been drawn back and all their horrors were exposed. Clifford Blossom had been a drug kingpin, who had murdered Jason in cold blood after discovering the true nature of his seemingly harmless maple syrup business. Cheryl was a wreck. The funeral was tomorrow. And Elena... Elena didn't really know what to do.
After all, she had her own set of issues to contend with. Her biggest of which being a certain convict who was about to walk free and stroll on in to her life once more. She had sacrificed everything to get away from him. She'd thrown away her relationships with her Mom, Veronica and the rest of their family -not to mention everything she had ever known- and had moved away all in a bid to never have contact with him and his toxic world again. Two years and one not so solid jail sentence later and it had all been for nothing. Elena clenched her fist in a bid to contain her anger, doing so for what must have been the billionth time since she had discovered that her Dad was getting out of prison. Well if he thinks I'm going anywhere he's got another thing coming. I was here first. Her Mom was walking on sunshine and turning the Pembrooke upside down in a bid to make it presentable for his royal highness. Veronica didn't know what to think. And her? She wanted to drive him away with everything she had (plus a rather sharp pitchfork), and scream that this was her town, her sanctuary away from him and his mile long list of baggage, and that he had no right to saunter back into their lives after everything he'd put them through and all of the terrible things he'd done. But she had no trump cards left. Nothing to hold back the unstoppable force that was pressing down on her, threatening to crush her and everyone around her if they got in his way. Hiram was coming home. God help them all.
I am an actual child. She sighed to herself as she handed off the footballers' orders, turning back around to find her section of the diner perfectly tended to. Like lining marbles up in a row. Seeing that she had a spare few minutes to check in on Cheryl, Elena slipped out from behind the counter once more and strolled on over to her occupied girlfriend. As she came up from behind her, she took note of the battered copy of the lesbian pulp fiction novel she was engrossed in, as well as the red shades placed over her eyes despite there being a thick layer of snow on the ground outside. She shifted to the side of the booth wordlessly as Elena slipped in next to her, staring in concern as the redhead bookmarked her page. "How was the bagel?" She queried, having forced her to come with her to work that morning as well as to eat something. She sighed in relief at the crumbs left on her plate, grateful that at the very least she was eating. "Good?" Elena poked her gently in the side, but received no answer. So she decided there and then to take off Cheryl's glasses, folding them up and setting them on the counter, turning back to find her girlfriend red-eyed and puffy cheeked. Elena's heart sank at the sight, doing so even more as Cheryl glanced down at the counter shamefully, as though stung by her gaze.
"Cheryl-"
"It was appetizing enough." The cheerleader croaked out, her voice raw from screaming and sobbing. "I'm remarkably full."
"Cheryl." Elena placed her index finger under her chin, forcing her head up to meet Elena's gentle gaze. "It's okay Cher. It's okay to not be okay, you don't have to hide the fact that you're upset. Don't. Please!" She pleaded, taking Cheryl's hands into hers. She was worried. Incredibly so. In the week since the discovery of Clifford's heinous crime, her bubbly and mouthy girlfriend had all but disappeared under a cloud of tears and heartache. She had barely spoken, and when she had it was to berate her awful father with screams and shouts when they were alone together. The discovery that he had murdered her brother had taken her already fragile porcelain like love, and had shattered her into a million pieces. Her family was the talk of the town. The Blossoms' were ruined, along with their fortune. Elena had been doing what she could, holding her hand, soothing her during the worst of her grief fuelled tantrums, and doing her best to help pull Cheryl back together. She knew that she was doing the best she could given the circumstances, but it wasn't as though Elena had a book or someone to defer to for help during a time such as this. She felt as though she had one hand in Cheryl's, and that was the only thing keeping her stable and steady lest she fade away all together.
She was out of her depth.
Elena had struggled in comforting people even before the tragedy, as handling the emotions of others as well as her own just didn't come naturally to her. She felt like a little kid left at the counter, waiting desperately for an older authority figure to return from the depths and take over for her. She needed help, and Cheryl needed it badly, particularly if Elena's worst fears were realised and Cheryl's mental state was as bad as she suspected it to be. Her family? Jason? Clifford? The family business going under? It would be enough to make anyone feel like throwing in the towel and give up on the rest of the world. Elena knew for a fact that the world could be cruel. It could be cruel, nasty and unforgiving, and would take the kindest of hearts and crush them like ants under a boot. Cheryl was all marshmallow underneath her fiery exterior, and could break in half with just the right amount of pressure applied. Elena was seeking to make sure that didn't happen, but she couldn't help but feel as though she'd been left a miniature cup to save her girlfriend from a sinking ship.
"Cheryl-," She traced patterns into her palms, treading lightly on the unstable ice that was keeping Cheryl afloat. "-I was thinking... Maybe you should talk to someone. I know you probably think that talking to a stranger about your problems would be a complete waste of time, but it could really benefit you." She closed her eyes for a moment, readying herself. "I'm worried, okay? You're burying him tomorrow, and you're not yourself. Yes you've been talking to me, but I can't help you the way a professional could. Would you want to? Please, consider it at least! Even just a trial run if you're not too fond of the idea. I'd never force you to go, it's your choice of course. I- I just want you to be able to process this. You don't have many people around you, and I just want you to have all the possible support available." She rambled, feeling as though she was ticking off a list of all the things that had gone through her head that past week. "I love you, and I'm scared for you right now."
Cheryl stared straight at her, a hard edge forming in her eyes as she fought to maintain some semblance of composure. "How did you cope? When you found out that your father was nothing like the person you thought he was? How..." She trailed off, disappearing into the fog that had claimed her from the world for the past few days. "How did you move on? How do you deal? How do you not think about it every second of every day?"
Elena blinked at the question as Cheryl stared unblinkingly back at her, desperation reflecting to Elena as she turned to her for an answer. Any answer. But this was something Elena was still trying to figure out for herself, and it killed her that she couldn't help ease the pain that so clearly clinging to Cheryl. "I don't know baby," she admitted, sighing heavily as she heard her own words, "It's still a work in process. I'm sorry but I really don't know. But I do know that the it gets easier with time thing does hold true. It doesn't get easier to think about -something like that never could be- but it does get easier to deal with. After a while... You learn to compartmentalize. You put whatever distance you can between you and all that hurt you, and you get on with your life. You don't let someone else's sins drag you down with them or else they've won at destroying everything."
Cheryl nodded silently in response to her words, taking it all in before turning back to her once again. "Maybe... Maybe seeing someone wouldn't hurt. I don't know, but I'll give it some thought." She promised, nodding as though to assure herself of the fact.
Elena lit up, hope sparking to life inside of her. She could practically taste it, as it swirled around inside of her in all of its glory. "Really?" Cheryl nodded, offering her a tentative smile as Elena kissed her knuckles in a gentle gesture. "You've got this Blossom." She told her, firm in her belief that the girl in front of her was an unshakeable force. "It may not seem like it now, but I know that you do. Just keep looking forward."
Cheryl's painted fingers trailed over to Elena's neck where a spider necklace with a light blue abdomen hung, causing her small smile to widen at the familiar sight. "Oh! Oh I remember you! Oh Ellie you found it!" She took the necklace between her fingers for a moment, twisting and twirling with it before setting it back down.
"I found it cleaning out my jewellery box this morning, it was under a mountain of earrings!" She giggled, happy to have elicited a now all too rare smile from Cheryl.
"So what is it with you and that spider brooch?" Elena wondered as she and Cheryl strolled down the halls of Riverdale High, with the both of them not so secretly excited due to the looming arrival of their next official date. Though they had only gone out a few times previously, Elena felt as though something truly special was cementing between her and the redhead. She was just so... Cheryl. So full of personality and life, she'd never met someone so funny and out of this world. Polly had warned her that she was an egotistical narcissist, but Elena found her self confidence to be quite the feat considering what she had let slip about her home life. Though she was undeniably a little self-obsessed, it just didn't really bother her. It was nice to be around someone like her, who inspired her to step out of her comfort zone and revisit the world that she had shied away from. In her worst moments of self doubt, Elena would remind herself that she could stand to be a little more like the girl she had started to fall for in such a small span of time.
Cheryl cocked a perfectly manicured brow as she grinned at Elena, lacing her hand through hers as they took their time heading to lunch. "Don't you mean my iconic spider brooch? The one that I discovered?"
"Ah!" Elena nodded in fake understanding. "Yes, that one!"
"I hold quite the admiration for spiders, they're the only creatures in the animal kingdom that could ever measure up to me!" She declared, all smiles as Elena's eyes widened at the rather odd declaration from her. "They also make for excellent accessories!" As Elena headed over to her locker to dump some of her books inside, she shook her head to herself as Cheryl rambled on with the comparison. "and I found the most darling spider ankle bracelet!"
"Do I even want you to elaborate on that?"
"No you do not."
Elena shut her locker door but found herself jumping back in shock, as Cheryl stood holding out a silver chain in front of her. "For you, mi amore." She smiled, taking a hold of Elena's hand and placing the item in her palm. "I've seen you admiring my brooch and I know how much you love necklaces, so I thought I'd treat you with this."
"Cheryl..." The redhead stared at her expectedly as she inspected the item, hands clasped together as she smiled nervously. "Wow! This must have cost you- A lot, I'm guessing?" Elena didn't wait for an answer, giggling to herself as she poked at the spider. "It's so pretty!"
"Do you like it?"
Elena met her eyes. "I love it!" She declared, taking her hand in hers. "It's thoughtful, just about the sweetest thing anyone's ever gotten me, and beautiful." She rambled, buzzing with nervous energy. "Not as beautiful as a certain red robin I know, but a close second." Elena held out the necklace to her, poking out her bottom lip in a bid to entice her favour. "Put it on for me?"
Elena kissed Cheryl's forehead, smiling all the while as she played with her necklace. "And it's still the prettiest necklace I own." She declared with a wag of her finger, as Cheryl snuggled comfortably into Elena's side.
Eat your heart out Morticia Addams.
Elena gave a twirl for Veronica in the funeral dress she had picked out four days earlier, plastering on an uneasy smile as she sat down to join her sister at breakfast. "Well at least I'm a stylish non-mourner." She sighed, helping herself to a bagel from the plate that had been set out. "Black is just not my colour." She had the funeral to attend that morning, and a weight-like feeling of dread had been sinking down into her stomach ever since she had woken up at the all too loud buzz of her alarm. She was dreading the miserable affair, but without her there the only friendly face Cheryl would have was Rose, who was just as much as a mess as the rest of her family regarding Clifford's death. Grandson gunned down by her son. Elena hoped that the old woman wouldn't remember the all too horrifying fact in the long run.
"The funeral's today huh?"
"Yup." Elena confirmed with a sneer. "I personally hope that they've chosen to forgo a coffin all together and simply throw his corpse into the ground. The worms will love the easy pickings!"
"You're grumpy and morbid this morning." Veronica noted, as she sipped on her coffee. "Anything to do with you-know-who's return? Because let me tell you-" She set down her coffee cup, eyes ablaze with fury. "I'm furious! Mom's acting like nothing even happened!" Elena nodded grimly as she swivelled her head in the direction of the living room, where their mom was rushing to and fro as she tidied the apartment. She'd been coming in and out of every room in the apartment since she had arrived, seemingly unaware of her presence even then as she hurried to make the Pembrooke presentable and ready for her convict husband.
"She's back in mob wife mode." Elena observed, snatching a hold of Veronica's cup of coffee to sip at as she pulled a less than impressed face. Really? Did she honestly think that giving the apartment a good clean would change the fact that she had had an affair? I love you mom but your marriage went to shit long before the two of you stared fucking other people. It was a harsh sentiment, but Elena knew it to be true. Carve off the mould on the bread if you want, but it won't make it any more edible. The cracks were there -and though she wondered if it made her a terrible person- maybe, just maybe, the two of them would crack entirely and fall apart before the worst happened. It would be ugly, messy and beyond awful, but at least then her mom would be free of him. "And she's got the new clothes to prove it." In the week since Hiram's release had been made official, Elena had quietly been watching her mother as her wardrobe had transitioned back into her dutiful mob wife uniform and her general mood had gone from relaxed to a walking talking ball of anxiety. Elena couldn't help but worry. Was she really happy, going back to being his wife? Because to her, it all looked like one big front. But when her mother made up her mind, Elena knew that there was no changing it. It was an unfortunate trait that they had in common, but it was there all the same. Her mom was convinced that she needed her dad to be happy, and that thought wasn't going to change anytime soon. I'm going to have to work on her. Elena decided as she sat down the cup, chewing at her lip as she thought over the matter. Veronica too. Plus I'll need to keep a close eye on my all too crime happy parents. But how? She sat back in her seat, her brow creasing together. How could she go about counteracting whatever nefarious schemes they were inevitably going to cook up together, like the Latino versions of Boris and Natasha that they were?
Just as Elena decided to shelve the matter for a later time, Smithers came through the door with his arms filled to the brink with boxes of what seemed to be office supplies for what Elena guessed would be Hiram's new office. And he called me lazy. She rolled her eyes at the sight, rising from her seat to go over and help the doorman. "Here Smithers." She offered the struggling man as she approached him, taking a few boxes from him and setting them on to the floor.
"Thank you Miss Elena," he smiled gratefully, as he sat the last of his boxes down, "if you're ever looking to partake in the doorwoman business-"
"I know who to call." She winked, earning a chuckle from the man. Elena patted him on the back in parting, strolling back on over to the dining table to finish her breakfast. If the funeral was going to be as long and as drawn out as she suspected, she intended to fuel up with as much sustenance as possible.
"When should I be expecting Mr Lodge?" Smithers inquired, as their mom tended to a flower arrangement she had started to set up by the window near the dining table. The flowers were more than a little overkill in Elena's opinion, but she supposed if they made her feel a little less anxious she wasn't one to judge.
"Not till the end of the month, but everything has to be perfect." Elena scoffed at the comment, shaking her head to herself after sharing the same look of bewilderment with Veronica. Really? Her heart warmed at the same time due to the gesture. It was nice, being on the same page with her when it came to their father for once. He was coming home, but there was one pro. He was down one of his biggest cheerleaders. At least there's that. She could only hope it would stay that way.
"Yes, we would not want to make daddy angry." Veronica commented, voicing her and Elena's shared thoughts over the matter aloud.
"Heaven forbid it." Elena added dryly.
"That'll be all Smithers, thank you." Hermione replied to the doorman, sending him on his way. Though she had her back to the older woman, Elena could practically feel the glare she was focusing on the two of them as she sauntered over.
"He's your father girls, not the godfather." She walked on past them, off to fulfil another errand around the apartment.
"Debatable." Elena sing-songed once she was certain she was out of ear shot, earning a small smile from Veronica.
"In the Name of God, the merciful Father, we commit the body of Clifford Blossom to the peace of the grave."
Elena stood a few paces back from where Cheryl, Penelope and Rose observed Clifford being lowered into his final resting place. She'd been with Cheryl throughout the service, holding her hand and whispering words of comfort throughout the whole thing despite her being mostly unresponsive and as tired looking as she had ever seen the other girl. Penelope had seemingly been emotionally numb as she sat through the service, and to Elena's surprise hadn't so much as thrown a half-hearted dig her way. She would never like the woman, but she couldn't help but pity her. You think you know someone. Rose had greeted her with as much joviality as she could muster when she had met the group at the church, but she too had looked as miserable as she had ever seen her.
As Cheryl threw her share of the dirt on to her father's coffin she glanced back around at met Elena's eye. Glassy-eyed and filled with tears, she broke off from her mother and grandmother and slowly walked on over to where Elena was standing. She furiously wiped away the last vestiges of tears, coming to stand by Elena with her arms folded as they watched the sad display taking place in front of them. After a minute or so of standing in silence, Cheryl finally spoke up. "It's funny, isn't it? My father's going away forever, and yours is coming back."
"Cut off one head, and two more shall grow in it's place." Elena quoted. That was the Riverdale way now.
Cheryl's head turned. "What's the second head?"
Elena met her gaze, shrugging to herself. "Unbridled chaos, gentrification, capitalism at it's worst- Take your pick."
Cheryl snorted, still looking shell-shocked as she went silent for a moment more. Elena knew it was best not to disturb her, or else she would pull away all together. And that... That couldn't happen. "None of them came," she sighed, "the extended Blossom family. They were all otherwise ''engaged'' with other matters." She scoffed, turning her back to the burial. "Some family. They hovered around him all his life, and now that he's gone-"
"They're assholes." Elena acknowledged. "There's no pay-out from this, so I guess it wasn't important enough to show up for."
Silence reigned once more, but before long Cheryl opened her mouth once more. "Ellie?"
"Hmph?"
"Would you go to my funeral?"
Elena froze at the morbid question, her blood running cold as her eyes widened in shock. She furiously tore off the black funeral veil that had been shielding her eyes, turning to her girlfriend warningly. "Don't ever ask something like that. Why-" She spluttered, continuously coming up with a loss as to why her mind had gone in such a dark direction. "Why would you ask something like that?" She rambled angrily, effectively shielding the fear that had blossomed to life inside of her. She really was doing a lot worse than she was letting on. "Don't ever talk about dying, okay? That- That's just not an option. Ever." She informed her, firm in her thinking.
"But would you?" Cheryl persisted, determined to get her answer. "Would you be there, even in all the doom and gloom? Even if it was just you and Nana Rose?"
Elena tugged Cheryl's gloved hand, placing it into hers with a hard squeeze. "Of course I would. It'd be horrible, I'd be blubbering like a dummy throughout the whole thing, but I'd go. I'd go for anyone I loved."
Cheryl nodded, drifting off once more to that place she had been going to in her mind all week. "Ellie... I-" She drifted off, seemingly changing her mind at voicing whatever it was she was going to say before pulling her hand free from Elena's grasp. "Thank you for coming, but I should probably get back to mommy and Nana, and make sure Nana gets back to Thistle House alright."
"Cheryl-"
"Please." She pleaded, holding up a hand to stop her protests. "Please Ellie, I think I just need some time to myself. I'll see you at school when I can make it in, but I think I just need to spend the rest of this wretched day with mommy and Nana." And with that Cheryl turned her back to her with her mind made up, slowly trudging through the snow away from her and back to the almost finished burial.
"So it was a miserable affair then?" Jughead queried, as she walked with him up the street leading to Archie's house. She had called her friend to vent her frustrations and worries regarding Cheryl, and he in turn had invited her to the movie night he had successfully roped Archie into. He had insisted the other boy wouldn't mind, and so that was how she had found herself walking to Archie Andrews' house of all places, whilst simultaneously pouring her heart out to Jughead. He was nothing if not a good listener, and it also happened that he was eager for a chance to not think about how crap a turn things had taken for him at school.
"The Addams family turned down their invite, on account of it being too depressing." Elena grumbled, kicking at a stray stone as the two friends walked along the path. "Cheryl just looked so... I wouldn't say sad, her dad was evil incarnate. Just... out of it. It scared the hell out of me, she's been acting like it ever since he died. It's like she's not all there anymore." Her voice wavered. "I- I really don't know what I should do to help." She had been so eerily quiet lately, and for all the time the two girls had known each other she had been anything but.
"Ow!" Cheryl let out an unearthly screech, as she tumbled to the ground.
She was soon surrounded by a herd of girls as they clambered over one another to see Cheryl's state, only further igniting her fury. Elena hovered on the outskirts of the circle, hands clasped together as she wondered whether or not she should remain. There had been an early end to practice, and most of the girls along with Elena had headed back into the changing rooms. Cheryl had apparently insisted on her and a few of her inner circle perfecting one last move, which had appeared to have ended badly. The girls had emerged to find a red-faced Cheryl on the floor, with a few fearful looking Vixens looking as though they'd rather be anywhere else.
"Is it broken?"
"Is it sprained?"
"Should we get the nurse?"
Elena fidgeted with her bag as she watched on in concern, biting her lip to supress a laugh as she heard Cheryl chew out the girls for hovering around her. Though she hadn't known the girl for very long, Elena had long since decided that when the head cheerleader got angry it was just about the funniest thing she had ever had the pleasure of witnessing. She got so riled up and went almost as red as her hair, which in turn only furthered Elena's amusement of her angered state.
"Pink bag girl!" Elena blinked as she felt the eyes of a dozen girls land on her, with Cheryl's expectant face peeking out through the legs of one of the girls stood by her. What was her name? Ginny? Ginger? Something dumb like that. Cheryl gestured for her to come over, with an impatient look in her eye that told Elena that she would not take no for an answer. Repressing the urge to run in the opposite direction of the whirlwind of a girl who was still beckoning her forth, Elena made her way over despite her continued confusion over being called over. Jason Blossom had introduced the two of them when she had first auditioned for the cheerleading squad, but it seemed the mouthier of the twins was determined to keep calling her by the nickname she had christened her with from when they had first met.
Elena made her way through the crowd of girls, coming to a standstill in front of Cheryl who was staring up at her. The redhead held out her arms in offering. "Would you be a dear and take me to the nurse's office?" She requested, her voice turning soft as an angelic smile graced her lips. "It's just that I'm in so much pain from my sprained ankle!"
Five minutes later and Elena was carrying the cheerleader outside bridal style, all the while silently praying that she could get the demanding redhead to the nurse's office before the bell rang and she was swarmed by a crowd of students. It just had to be on the other side of the school, didn't it? "So..." Cheryl smiled like the cat who'd caught the canary. "Pink bag girl, tell me something about yourself. I'm dying to know more about you."
Elena huffed, wondering just how someone so skinny could be so heavy. What was with this girl? Why was she digging into her business all of a sudden? But she sensed that Cheryl wasn't going to budge until she threw the girl something for her to ponder over, so Elena reluctantly decided to indulge her. Cheryl didn't seem to be particularly malicious to her, just very (very) nosy. "Well for starters my name is Elena. E-L-E-N-A. Elena."
"You are quite the shining light."
Elena let out a deep laugh at the cheesy pickup line, a grin finding it's way on to her face for the first time in over a year. "Wow." She chuckled, shaking her head to herself. She was equal parts cringing and impressed that she had the guts to sprout something as mortifyingly cheesy as that, and still remain grinning at her like a little mermaid that had just got legs. "Please tell me that you don't use lines like that to pick up boys."
"No. Only the pretty girls."
Elena's face warmed. Had she... Was she... Cheryl smile simply widened as she snuggled into Elena's arms, looking all too comfortable as she continued to eye the other girl. "I thought we should get to know each other, seeing as how you're the newest member of the squad. I was shocked that you had moves if I'm honest, transfers rarely if ever have any kind of skill."
"You looked me up." Elena stated.
"I may have." Cheryl shrugged. "I'm curious about you. I hate mysteries and I intend to solve the one in front of me, so tell me about yourself."
Elena shrugged. What harm could it do? "I turned sixteen recently, I hate math with a passion, I'm currently being interrogated by the world's most persistent redhead, I'm partial to the colour blue and I really hate olives. Your turn."
To Elena's utter surprise, she began to speak. "My middle name is Marjorie, I'm partial to the colour red, I was recently made cheer captain of the River Vixens, I run this school and I don't care who knows it. So why did you have to repeat?" She asked, driving straight on to her next line of questioning. Elena couldn't help but admire her persistence. "You're way too skinny to have had a baby, you've certainly got brains as I've seen you in class, so..." Elena sighed in relief as she neared their destination.
"I messed around a lot back at my old school and didn't really take my education seriously. There was some other stuff as well, and all of that culminated in me having to repeat a year." She supplied, her eyes drifting in front of as she kicked open the door to the nurse's office.
"Elena?"
"Oooh she does have a memory! What?"
"Why did you get emancipated?"
Elena stilled, dropping Cheryl into a seat outside the nurse's waiting room. Cheryl stared up at her, an eyebrow cocked her way. "Another time." She dismissed, re-fastening her shoulder bag.
"Well my broken ankle thanks you."
"I thought it was sprained?"
Cheryl shot her an all too innocent smile, that told Elena everything she needed to know about the girl in front of her. "Later Marjorie." She winked, waving goodbye to the redhead as she made her way out of the nurse's office.
Jughead threw an arm around her and did his best to comfort her, despite the uncomfortable situation with his father being partially involved in the cause of Cheryl's misery. "Maybe the whole therapy thing isn't such a bad idea." He informed her. "Grab her after school and call them, see if they have any open slots for her this week." Elena nodded in agreement at the suggestion, feeling as though it was now the only option to go with. Cheryl was trying to deal with everything that had happened on her own, and although Elena was happy to let her have some breathing room, she knew that too much couldn't be a good idea in the long run.
"How are things on the FP front?" She inquired, desperate for a change of subject as she nudged the boy questioningly. As much as she wanted to rip FP's head off for the part he'd played in the cover-up, Elena hated seeing Jughead so miserable and alone. She hated the thought of him alone in that trailer with only his own company, and with zero parental guidance to turn to. It reminded her too much of herself, and she knew how lonely and alienating it could be. He needed his dad, that much was obvious. But with the way things seemed to be going, it was not looking great for the Serpent King.
"Awful." Jughead answered simply. "They're looking at giving him twenty years unless he narks on the Serpents."
Elena groaned in sympathy, patting him on the back in consolation. "And he's not going to do that, is he?" She correctly guessed. He was loyal, she'd give him that. "I'm sorry Jug."
"Me too."
They soon made it to Archie's front door, where upon opening it Archie greeted them both with more cheer than the two friends could combine at that moment in time. Elena managed to muster up a friendly smile as the three of them chatted, none the wiser to the visitor that was stood with Fred in the kitchen. Elena was the first to notice her as they strolled into the kitchen, with the woman immediately giving off a vibe that said that this would not be a friendly visit. Social Services. She guessed, her stomach doing backflips as she took note of her fancy suit and the heap of papers she had brought along with her. This could not be good.
"Hey guys!" Fred greeted, looking about as happy that she was there as Jughead was. "This is Miss Weiss from Social Services. She's uh- She's Jughead's case worker."
"Jughead, I know how terrible and emotional the last few days have been for you. Your father's facing serious jail time. Your mom's over-extended and out-of-state. We just wanna make sure that you're taken care of." The social worker explained, setting the grim tone for the evening as Elena saw Jughead's face fall at her words.
"He can keep staying with us, right dad?" asked Archie, as Elena's concern for her friend grew at the saddened look on Fred's face.
"I offered already, Arch." Fred sighed.
"Great so what's the problem?"
"There was a DUI, after your mom left. Look we can talk about this later." He continued, the news slowly worsening. "But between my cash-flow problem, it knocks me out."
The words were leaving Elena's mouth before her brain caught up with the rest of her. "I'll do it!" She declared, raising her hand as though she was in class. Feeling the stares on her she quickly lowered her hand, turning to the social worker to plead her case. "I'll do it! I could foster him!"
"Y-You're-"
"An emancipated teen with steady income, decent housing, and with no criminal record?" Elena flashed her her most winning smile, that would have made Cheryl proud. "Why yes I am! And Jughead would love to live with me!"
Jughead stared at her with his mouth wide-open, causing her to sharply elbow him to ignite a response. "Yeah! Yeah!" Jughead nodded. "Yeah I'd love to live with her!" The pair shared a conspiratorial look, before turning back to the social worker with equally innocent smiles.
Miss Weiss glanced between the two of them, looking to Elena as though she was wondering what bizarre world she had fallen into. "I'd have to vet your place, go over your history-"
Elena nodded rapidly.
She could do this!
This could work.
